Monorail.



- J. R. COE.y 1101101111111. APPLICATION 211.111)v SEPT.` 1a, 1914.

Patented 11311.23, 1915.

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JAMES ROBERT COE, 0F WATERBURY, CONNECTICUT.

MONORAIL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 23, 1915.

Application led September 18, 1814. Serial No. 862,272.

To all whom it may concern n Be it known that I, JAMES R. COE, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of Waterbury, county of New Haven, State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Monorails, of which the following is a full, clear, and eXact description.

y invention relates to improvements 1n overhead monorails, the main object being to provide an improved construction whereby such devices are rendered very strong, are made highly durable and efectlve, and can be readily repaired.

In the drawings,-Figure l is a perspective View partly broken away and showing the parts also in section. F ig. 2 is a similar View of a modification.

It will be understood that my invention 1 s chiefly of value in connection with monorail structures such as employed for so-called monorail cranes or trolleys, in which the load is suspended from above. In the drawings I have shown the lower part of a piece of structural iron work known as an I-beam.

1 represents the web of said beam and 2 represents the lower flange thereof which projects from opposite sides of the web 1. Ordinarily these beams are made of a medium, or soft, steel incapable of successful and effective use as a rail. It has, nevertheless, been a common practice heretofore to try to utilize such structural beams as a track for overhead trolleys, the trolley wheels running on the upper part of the flange 2. This practice is unsatisfactory for various reasons, for example: The character of the metal of the I-beam is inappropriate for this use; I-beams for structural purposes are ill-adapted for this use because, in cooling, the lower flange is frequently warped which would cause the trolley carriage to wabble and tilt, producing an abnormal swaying of the machine and a side thrust of the carriage itself against the rail, tending to produce undue friction and wear. Again, in ordinary practice, the upper surfaces of an I-beam flange form planes whichare oblique to each other, thus tending to spread the carriage and thereby cause undue friction on the hub end of the trolley wheels. Again, owing to the incline of the'said surfaces, the trolley wheels have formed by preferencein the same plane, so-

that the trolley wheels willV have a line contact thereon. The wear strips are provided with lugsor fianges Ha which extend upwardly and which may be secured, by bolts or rivets 5, on the opposite sides of the web material,

1, thereby holding said pieces 3 31 firmly Y in place.

In Fig. 2 I have shown a modified form of wear pieces. In this case the tread of the wear strips, upon which the trolley wheels rest, are indicated at 6-6a. These parts 6 6a are connected by preference to companion parts 7-7 by `means of webs 8--8a respectively. 9 is a bolt which passes through the web 1 of the structural part and the webs 8-8a of the wear strips and by which said wear strips or track elements are securely clamped in operative position on opposite sides of the web l above the lower liange 2. In this case the webs 8-8a are preferably spaced away from the structural web 1 to better support the rail head or tread portion which carries the load. By this modified form the wear elements are reversible and may be placed either side up. In both cases it will be seen that the load is mainly carried by the lower iange 2 instead of by the bolts or rivets holding the wear elements in place, and it is likewise noteworthy that the load is carried by the lower Hange 2 close to the web, where it is the strongest and where it is the least distorted.

In the drawings I have not shown the ordinary trolley wheels or hanger such as used for cranes and the like, such constructions being too well understood to require illustration. I have however illustrated, by dotted lines, approximately the position of the two trolley wheels.

It frequently happens that the usual structural beams employed in a building are themselves of a strength incapable of carrying such loads as required and in such cases it is necessary to provide additional heavier beams to carry the crane trolleys. By my improvement, however, the application of the track elements to the existing -beam structures adds materially to the strength of the same, so that they can successfully carry a load which would otherwise be excessive.

What I claim is,-

1. A track for devices of the character described comprising a main structural beam including a web and an integral flange7 supplemental wear pieces secured to said web and supported on said flange between said web and the edges of said flange and providing two oppcsitely arranged rail treads.

2. A track for devices of the character described comprising a main structural beam including a web and an integral liange, supplemental wear pieces secured to said web between said web and the edges of said flange and providing two oppositely arranged rail treads, said Vsiupplemental pieces being made of relatively tougher Gopies` of this patent may be obtained for stoclr than the main beam and supported on said ange. Y

3. A track for devices of the character described comprising a main structural beam including a web and an integral iiange, supplemental wear pieces secured to said web between said web and the edges of said flange and providing two oppositely arranged rail treads, the treads of said wear pieces being in substantially the same horizontal plane and supported on said iange.

4. A track for devices of the character described comprising a main structural beam including a web and an integral flange, supplemental wear pieces secured to said web between said web and the edges of said flange and providing two oppositely arranged rail treads, each of said supplemental wear pieces including two treads and an intermediate connecting web, said supplemental pieces being reversible and supported on said flange.

JAMES ROBERT COE.

Witnesses E F. MERRiLL, H. E. VARNER.

five cents each. by addressing the Commissioner of Patente,

Washington, D. C. 

